Cirrhosis

Cirrhosis is a chronic disease of the liver in which liver tissue is replaced by connective tissue, resulting in the loss of liver function. Cirrhosis is caused by damage from toxins (including alcohol), metabolic problems, chronic viral hepatitis or other causes. Cirrhosis is sometimes referred to by its obsolete eponym Laennec's cirrhosis after René Laënnec. Cirrhosis is irreversible but treatment of the causative disease will slow or even halt the damage.

Epidemiology

In the United States, cirrhosis is the twelfth leading cause of death by disease, killing about 26,000 people each year. As it is a chronic disease with often frequent and severe complications, the cost of cirrhosis in terms of quality of life, hospital admissions, and lost productivity is high.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~